Old and bitter vs. young and open-minded lightning rod Jemele Hill has written her debut column for ESPN.com.
Predictably, a thread was been started on sportsjournalists.com, and it's expanding with record-breaking speed. And predictably, it not only addresses the merits of her first column but takes more shots at her personally.
UPDATE: Subsequently, it was not even locked with record-breaking speed. It was taken down altogether. So the link I had above is gone.
I think we need more Jemele Hills stirring things up in this business, but of course that's not going to fly with with the increasingly grumpy sportswriting establishment, many of whom are simply jealous over the opportunity she has gotten and the money she's making but who, of course, would never admit that.
Their denial doesn't make it less so.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Jemele Hill debuts
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2 comments:
Sent this to j hill in response to her last article which calls the death of broncos' darrent williams not a shocl.
First of I want to say this. Yes, you are black, but you don't need to include that fact in everything you write.
I googled you and I saw the words black and race mentioned as much as your name....sad
Please don't take this opportunity you have as a writer on page 2 and turn it into your personal black people can do better page and this is what they need to do....
Now, what I found to be most upsetting is that you used the death of Darrent Williams to spring board your point to the media. As well thought out as you think that was, it was a bad decision. It was not the right time nor place to present it. Then in your opinion suggest that this was not shocking is past intolerable.
"But here's the one word we can't use in describing such a death: Unexpected." <--- tell that to his mom.
It was not your place to make judgements about someone you don't know, some one who has been backed by everyone knows him a man with good character.
To go from Darrent Williams death to scar face and the godfather was not appropiate. All you have is opinion no facts.
In all professions, all walks of life there are people who do wrong, but being rich, popular and young puts a different strain on a person.
Not because he wants it but, negative attention follows thoses who have. The have nots want what they have, that leads to jealousy. Which is why you have heard Joey Porter say " He was doing the right things, He was leaving early, He had a limo....."
Not to mention the majority of nfl and nba players are black. These are the two most watch sports in america, and if you don't think espns 24/7 coverage and glorification of these sports and mtv's shows about what their money has afforded them has contibuted to this than you are wrong. BET, scarface and tony are not the only sources for what you claim to be influences for people. Our people.
Manily who do you think you are ... the moral compass for blacks, you are no one. Seriously, you will not be on page two much longer with articles like this in my opinion, or did you think that maybe white america likes to see this. More black on black attacks.
Also juming from black to aa, you sound ignorant. I am not trying to attack you, but that is a mistake there yes a mistake, choose one and stick with it.
My whole point in writing this is next time, think before you write. As a black man with a bs in computer science I was offended by your gross lack of judgement here. I watched this mans last game and to hear he was murdered hours later was extremely shocking and unexpected to anyone who watched the nfl this season. Perhaps you didnt and to you his name is all you know, and that he was black.
To attack tank johnson here was low, he had nothing to do with this. Nor was he comteplating anything terroist like. You included that because terriost are in main stream news constantly and thought it would add depth to your story. Wrong it lessed the effects of what you had to say.
I also want to point out to you that america is not generally a dangerous place and that is speaking realative to nations that are dangerous.
And to say that black athletes are ofter holding a gun or staring down the barrel of one is once again an opinion of yours. Did you do any reasearch no, you just wrote based on what you think. I know page two is opinioned based but your negative genrealizations about blacks are just not cool.
Serious dissapointment here, done with it.
Since the second (or third) word of her column was "I," there's no need to read on.
Who cares what she thinks?
Not eye.
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